Huntington, Wheeling plans green-lighted by Home Rule board

The West Virginia Home Rule Board approved measures Friday from Huntington and Wheeling.

Home Rule Board chairman Patsy Trecost, mayor of Clarksburg, told MetroNews that Huntington will now be allowed to assess a fee on owners who don’t keep their properties in good condition.

File photo

Patsy Trecost

Trecost said the measure will create a partnership between Huntington and the property owners because the city will give them 10 days to fix the problems without facing a fee.

The Home Rule board also approved Wheeling’s proposed half-cent increase in the state sales tax.

Trecost said the money will be used to improve the city’s infrastructure. Wheeling City Council will be voting to reduce the city’s B&O tax next month.

Friday’s meeting marked the last for the initial five-year Home Rule Pilot Project that includes Charleston, Bridgeport and the aforementioned Huntington and Wheeling. A new state law will allow more than a dozen other cities to be added to the pilot project. Trecost said those decisions won’t be made until July 2014.